


Blood Sister

by sinousine



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Gen, Gladiators, Sister-Sister Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-12
Updated: 2017-07-12
Packaged: 2018-12-01 03:32:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11477730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinousine/pseuds/sinousine
Summary: Maul sisters fic from 2014, which was a gift to Pileofsith. Set in the same universe as my fem Grievous fics.





	Blood Sister

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pileofsith](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=pileofsith).



> This fic was rushed when I wrote it, and if I were to write it again it would be different, but it is what it is. I'm posting it up here for those curious.

Savage Opress could hardly believe the sight before her. Staring back at her from the edge of the arena was her mirror image. Though longer of face, and features creased and angry and bright red, the sharp horns, the pinched nose and dark tattoos were so familiar. Behind the stranger, an elaborate insectoid helmet lay in the sand, knocked off in the heat of the fight.

Around them the audience was screaming for blood, hands and voices raised in excitement, sweat vapor and body odor clouding the chamber. An announcer with jagged teeth and sandy, droopy skin was frantically announcing the results, his face lit up by the yellow arena lights hung from the ceiling of the chamber. Admiral Atrocious, knocked out and unmasked by the newcomer! The undefeated champion beaten!

Savage extended her hand to the other Zabrak, who lay against a toppled pylon. They looked surprised as well, as if they’d seen a ghost.

“Who…are you?”

-

Mama Talzin’s amulet had led her here, on this miasma-shrouded junk heap of a world. With a commandeered ship she flew over the planet, following the trail of…something. She was eventually led to the Arena, an underground structure that hosted daily matches between the sector’s most brutal fighters. Savage knew that destiny had led her here, but why? Walking through the throng of unfamiliar beings, asking questions, slipping a few credits under the table.

The answer came from above – from second floor walkway. Savage caught a glimpse of an insectoid warrior, who promptly vanished from sight. The amulet started to glow, the signal stronger than ever.

“Who was that?”

“Admiral Atrocious” – was the alias of this being. He had appeared three years prior and was the undefeated champion of this place. Nobody, aside from his manager, had seen him under the mask. Nobody knew the location of his home planet or his species for that matter, and he spoke very little. Savage found the appellation “Atrocious” to be quite grandiose, but Mama Talzin had given her a “lucky” name as well. Well, it was time to play the game, and meet this fabled admiral.

Savage had joined the ranks, soundly plowing through every challenger that came her way in hopes of meeting this mysterious, masked figure. The Nightsister had brute strength – the blessing of Mama Talzin – on her side, as well as her cunning and sleight of hand.

Finally, the long-awaited day came, and Savage Opress was pitted against the notorious Admiral Atrocious. A large crowd had gathered on that day to see the star of the Arena face the newcomer.

The two regarded each other, the Admiral through the black eyes of his elaborate mask. The match began.

The Admiral was worthy opponent. Within moments he had bloodied Savage’s face. In another she brought knee up to his gut and met with something hard and metallic. She could swear he had unnaturally fast reflexes. 

But she had the Spirits on her side as well – and the Admiral was knocked to the ground, his mask unceremoniously thrown to the side.

-

“What’s your name?” Savage asked, peering into the locker room. The other Zabrak had her face to a dirty mirror. She was changing out of the blue robes of her alter ego.

“Are you here to make friends?” she sneered.

“You look – you look like me. Are you a Nightsister?”

The uniform coat came off, revealing a muscular, well-toned chest. She was wearing a short black top underneath. Savage could see that the black tattoos extended across her torso and arms.

“Never heard of them.”

“My name is Savage. Savage Opress. How did you get those tattoos?” she asked.

“None of your business” the stranger retorted, sloughing off the baggy trousers that were part of her costume.

Savage could now see that the stranger’s entire lower half was made of some sort of black metal. Her legs ended in taloned feet, like a gigantic bird. No wonder she had been so difficult to knock over during the match.

“Your legs…”

“And what about them?”

“How did you lose them?”

Before she could say another word, Savage Opress was stopped by an invisible force. It was as if an unseen hand was gripping her throat. The stranger had turned around and was clenching her fist.

-

Maul remembered the woman with the greying hair and pale skin. The closest thing to a family she had ever had. And the beatings, the constant fear of failure. From the crack of dawn and into the dark hours of the night she trained under this woman, until every move was flawless. She was not allowed to be with other children her age and could not go anywhere without Master Sidious. If she cried – no she wasn’t allowed to, banished all signs of weakness.

From this crucible, she emerged victorious. Deloris Palpatine’s finest servant, a living weapon – until, until –

Kenobi…

-

As soon as the stranger had Savage in a Force-hold, she let go.

“Kenobi…” she muttered, lost in thought.

“Is that your name…?”

“The one who took my legs! Left me for dead!”

Feeling the simmering anger of the other Zabrak, Savage took a step back.

“I know who that is,” she replied. The Countess had told her about the Jedi Order and its high council. So her mission from Talzin was this, vengeance?

-

“Come back to Dathomir with me. I know someone who can help you.”

And so, the Nightsister – or whoever she was – agreed to return with Savage Opress to see Mother Talzin.

-

Savage had always known she was different from the other Nightsisters. Instead of a head of hair, she had a crown of horns. Instead of chalk-white, her skin was yellow, like the flowers growing on the edge of the river. As she grew older, the differences became more apparent. Instead of the high, lilting voices of the other Nightsisters, her voice was low, her shoulders and chest broad. Mama Talzin reassured her that this was alright – that there were women from outside who had low voices, who towered above others – and had Old Daka mix a potion for Savage to drink.

 Savage remembered little of her life before. She remembered being lost, scared, wandering the woods alone when Lera – who guarded the gates – had found her. What her name was before, or who her birth parents were – it mattered little. She knew they were dead, or as good as dead. “Savage” – it was a lucky name. It was the name under which she learned to shoot a bow and arrow, to mend a broken roof, to lay traps, to track wild beasts and follow the call of the spirits. She learned the names of medicinal herbs and walked the secret paths in the forest, always returning to Mama Talzin’s embrace. On clear nights she would travel to a grassy field beyond the village to gaze upon the stars with the other sisters. With a telescope and a star chart she learned the names of the constellations. There were places beyond the village, beyond Dathomir. Forests made of gleaming glass and steel, acid oceans, gigantic floating rings made of ice and dust, beasts of all manner of forms.

The outside was hostile, Mama Talzin had warned. There were places where a woman – especially someone like Savage – lived in constant fear of men. Where one could spend a lifetime toiling away, but starve in a city full of food for lack of money. 

Talzin had connections with the outside. Many her of daughters worked for offworlders, as mercenaries. Their education was to prepare them – to be as cruel and cunning as those who would cause them harm. Savage proved her prowess in each trial thrown her way, earning the black tattoos reserved for the most accomplished warriors of the clan. 

It was spring in the swamp when Mama Talzin decided it was time for Savage to see the galaxy. She was given to option – spend a year abroad, and either return and stay with us, or leave forever. Savage was on the verge of adulthood and a full head taller than any other Nightsister. Pink flowers bloomed on overhanging vines, their sweet odor tinting the air. Savage carried a bag of essentials over her shoulder – a galactic passport, credits for a ride offplanet, a transceiver for emergency calls. She looked forward. The morning fog lingered on the dirt path leading out, illuminated gold by the rising sun. She took one last look back at the only home she had ever known, and headed off. 

She saw many things while abroad – places as terrifying as Mama Talzin had described. Sometimes the local boys threw insults at her, or an innkeeper would look upon her with suspicion. There were narrow escapes and broken windows. There were also things that were pleasant to look at and things that were pleasant to eat. But soon, a year had passed and Savage found no place as welcoming as Dathomir.

When she returned, scratched in places but alive and well, the entire village cheered.

Years later, Savage would be called to travel again. 

-

On the trip back, Savage had learned the identity of the stranger. “Darth Maul” was her name – and contrary to her first impression, she was not an exiled Nightsister but the apprentice of a Sith witch named “Sidious”. Savage wondered what Mama Talzin had in mind when she had been sent on this mission. The only Sith Savage knew of was the Countess, who was an old friend of Talzin. Or Asajj Ventress – who was a Nightsister too. 

Darth Maul was a menace to the other Nightsisters. Though Mama Talzin had used her magic to assuage the newcomer’s myriad neuroses, she was a brooding loner at best, and a beastly terror at her worst. Revenge against the Jedi was never far from her mind and her concept of “family” was lacking. Bruised necks and broken arms – those were supposed to be reserved for the enemies of Nightsisters! Still, Maul seemed to regard Savage as a sister, showing interest in what she had to say. For the past ten years, she had been stuck on that garbage planet, and was only catching up. It was obvious that she had no siblings as a child – only children were like that.

“It seems that Sidious has replaced me,” Maul said one day.

The two of them were atop the watchtower at the center of the village. 

“I must confront this Countess Dooku.”

Savage frowned. She had a bad feeling about this. The Countess was her boss.

Still, she felt responsible for the stranger who had come into her life –

The next morning they set off for Serenno, and what a story that became for the both of them.


End file.
